Indra Nooyi, Chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, Joins USA Bid Committee to Bring FIFA World Cup to United States in 2018 or 2022

Sep 29, 2010

NEW YORK (September 29, 2010) – Indra K. Nooyi (IN-dra NEW-e), chairman and chief executive officer of PepsiCo, has formally accepted an invitation to join the Board of Directors for the USA Bid Committee in its quest to bring the FIFA World Cup™ to the United States in 2018 or 2022.

Nooyi joins the Board of Directors of the USA Bid Committee that on May 17, 2010 welcomed President Bill Clinton as its Honorary Chairman and whose efforts have earned the enthusiastic support of President Barack Obama. President Clinton and President Obama each authored letters of support in the official U.S. bid book presented on May 14, 2010 in Zurich to FIFA President Joseph S. (Sepp) Blatter, who was welcomed to the White House last summer by President Obama.

Other members of the Board of Directors for the USA Bid Committee include New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, comedian Drew Carey, former boxer Oscar De La Hoya, American soccer stars Landon Donovan and Mia Hamm, Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber, former U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger, director Spike Lee, actor Brad Pitt and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Nooyi commemorated her new role by adding her name to the USA Bid Committee’s online petition at goUSAbid.com, joining the more than 1,060,000 people who have already registered their support for the effort.

“Indra Nooyi has the same gift in developing and overseeing innovative corporate strategy as she does inspiring the people around her and everyone she meets,” said Sunil Gulati, Chairman of the USA Bid Committee and President of U.S. Soccer. “It’s that kind of leadership that will be important to our efforts, and for that reason we are fortunate to welcome Indra to our team. Indra and PepsiCo are also longtime friends of U.S. Soccer so their familiarity with our mission will be extremely beneficial in the months ahead.”

PepsiCo has been a proud sponsor of MLS for 15 years with activation from Gatorade, Pepsi and Aquafina. PepsiCo is also the exclusive beverage sponsor of the U.S. team that competed recently in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“We support soccer all over the world, and I am truly honored to join this talented group to try to bring this wonderful event to the United States,” said Nooyi. “The World Cup captures the attention of the entire global community and creates memories that last for generations.”

Following the FIFA Inspection Delegation’s technical tour of the United States from September 6-9, FIFA’s 24 member Executive Committee is now in the final stages of studying the nine bids and will name the hosts for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments on December 2, 2010, completing a 21-month bid and review process.

The United States, England and Russia have formally declared their desire to host the FIFA World Cup™ in 2018 or 2022. Netherlands-Belgium and Portugal-Spain have each submitted joint bids for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments, while Australia, Japan, Qatar and South Korea have only applied as candidates to host the tournament in 2022. Indonesia withdrew its bid in March 2010, while Mexico withdrew its bid in September 2009. Following the Mexico announcement, CONCACAF issued a public endorsement for the United States bid in November that pledged the full support of soccer’s governing body for North and Central America and the Caribbean.

ABOUT U.S. SOCCER: Founded in 1913, U.S. Soccer has helped chart the course for soccer in the USA for more than 95 years as the governing body of the sport. In this time, the Federation’s mission statement has been simple and clear: to make soccer, in all its forms, a pre-eminent sport in the United States and to continue the development of soccer at all recreational and competitive levels. To that end, the sport’s growth in the past two decades has been nothing short of remarkable as U.S. Soccer’s National Teams have continually succeeded on the world stage while also growing the game here in the United States with the support of its members. For more information, visit ussoccer.com.

ABOUT THE USA BID COMMITTEE INC.: The USA Bid Committee is a non-profit organization created to prepare a successful application to host the FIFA World Cup™ in 2018 or 2022 on behalf of the United States Soccer Federation. U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati is Chairman of the USA Bid Committee, David Downs is the Executive Director and President Bill Clinton is the Honorary Chairman of the Board of Directors that includes New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, comedian Drew Carey, former boxer Oscar De La Hoya, American soccer stars Landon Donovan and Mia Hamm, actor Morgan Freeman, Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber, former U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger, director Spike Lee, actor Brad Pitt and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The U.S. Bid is supported by official sponsors American Airlines, AT&T and Fox Soccer Channel. The U.S. Bid includes 18 candidate host cities: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, Seattle, Tampa and Washington, D.C. The U.S. Bid also features 21 currently existing stadiums, 18 of which have been built or renovated in the last 20 years and all of which are in compliance with FIFA requirements. With an average capacity of more than 76,000 spectators, the stadiums in the U.S. Bid offer the availability of a World Cup-record five million tickets that would generate $1 billion in ticket sales. For more information on the U.S. Bid, visit goUSAbid.com.